A lazy weekend in Upstate New York. On Saturday evening there was music and
street food by the river and an opportunity to take a few pictures between two
bites of Tuscan pizza.
I wanted to make the ordinary a bit special. After all, a
stage singer surrounded by families and kids would not do anything crazy; and
the woman taking orders for pizza would just take orders in front of an old
truck.
Yet, I returned with a few shots
that have certain flair, or at least a bit of character.
I noticed the very “continental” features of the young lady
taking orders for Tuscan pizza. The evening sun was soft and gave the contrast
I needed on the side of the truck behind the woman. With the lens wide open,
this picture came out exactly as I had intended: it has nothing to do with
Upstate New York! I could have taken this shot in Bilbao, Malaga, Lisbon, or
Bari…
The stage singer interpreted jazz and blues with a gentle
touch. He was like a grandfather singing about the old days. I had my trusty 1970s
Nikkor 105 mm lens so needed to get a bit close to the stage for portraiture. I
waited, then for a split of a second, the singer looked at me with a face that
a grandfather may display when the grandson was not listening to him, or was
playing with knives in the kitchen! Or perhaps he just was thinking “I had that
lens in the 1970s – how come mine broke and this man is still using his??”
In a couple of short hours, many of the truck food vendors
ran out of food! People were hungry and the food was good. I wondered how to capture that moment when
the chef stops cooking, happy that he sold all the food he had. And I found
that relaxed and happy face of a cook who, when out of food, put a sign on his
truck and for a short moment talked to a customer who was still hoping for a
hot dog or a burger.
Streets, food, people and music – to an epicurean photographer
that Saturday evening in Rochester New York was a happy moment.
June 20, 2014
©Vahé Kazandjian, 2014
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